Will Kashmir’s street theatre die an unsung death?

Srinagar: Traditional Kashmiri street theatre, which once occupied centre stage as the most powerful medium of mass communication in Kashmiri society, seems to be dying a silent death.

In ‘Bandh Pather’ artistes dressed in colourful attire move from village to village highlighting social, economic and political issues with satirical overtone, the rulers being the target.

“Its unique feature was that males would invariably play women’s role wearing female dress,” said Javaid Ahmad Shah, who has produced more than a dozen television programmes on the dying ‘Bandh Pather’.

“Bandh Pather spoke against feudalism, autocracy, child marriage and other social evils through seven traditional theatre forms including ‘Gosain Pather’, which highlights the high-handedness of religious heads and their hegemony in Kashmiri society.

“The central government has decided to give scholarships to help revive this art form. We recently held a five-day workshop at Patnitop (in Jammu region) where we invited all performers connected with this theatre from the valley.

“I hope we ensure that Bandh Pather survives the onslaught of time and television, and we hope to revive public interest in this art form.”